The wife of a man imprisoned in the UAE at a 5-minute hearing says he wasn’t even allowed to look at her as he was sentenced to life

Matthew Hedges with his wife, Daniela Tejada. At right, the skyline of the Dubai Marina.

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Daniela Tejada via AP/Julian Finney/Getty Images for XCAT

The wife of a British academic who has been sentenced
to life in prison in the United Arab Emirates said he was not
even allowed to look at her in court.

Matthew Hedges, who was accused of spying for the
British government, was sentenced on Wednesday at a five-minute
hearing where he didn't have a lawyer.

His wife, Daniela Tejada, also said that she was not
allowed to speak to him after the sentencing and that she does
not know where he's being held.

The UK government said that it had not seen any
evidence that Hedges is a spy and that there would be "serious
diplomatic consequences" for the UAE, usually seen as an
ally.

The wife of Matthew Hedges, a British academic imprisoned in the
United Arab Emirates on spying charges, said he wasn't even
allowed to look at her during the five-minute hearing where he
was sentenced to life in prison.

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"I asked him to look at me if he was feeling too nervous, and he
tried to do so on a couple of occasions but was asked to face the
judge," Daniela Tejada told the
BBC's "Today" program on Thursday.

Tejada also said she was not able to talk to him after he was
sentenced on Wednesday, in a hearing at which he had no lawyer
present, on charges of spying for the British government.

"We were separated by about 10 to 20 meters, and as soon as the
sentence was given, we were both made to leave the room
immediately," she said.

Tejada said Hedges had to ask to hear the verdict again to
"double check if he had heard right."

The UAE's attorney general, Hamad Al Shamsi, said Hedges would
have the right to appeal the verdict before the federal supreme
court, though Tejada told the "Today" program that she had been
able to speak to his court-appointed lawyer only once about this
possibility.

She said she did not yet have confirmation of where he is now
being held, adding, "I can imagine he's just as distraught as I
am."

The UK government has condemned the sentence and said it could
have serious diplomatic consequences for the relationship between
the two allies.

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Jeremy Hunt, the UK foreign secretary, said there would be "serious diplomatic consequences" for the United Arab Emirates.

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Leon Neal/Getty Images

The UK foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, tweeted
on Wednesday that the UK government had "seen no evidence to
back up charges against" Hedges. He said his office would do "ALL
we can to get him home."

"UAE claim to be friend & ally of the UK so there will be
serious diplomatic consequences. Unacceptable," he wrote.

UK Prime Minister Theresa May said on Wednesday that she was
"deeply disappointed and concerned" about the case and would
raise it with authorities in the UAE.

But Tejada said the government "should have taken a firmer stance
from the beginning" and that the Foreign Office had been
dismissive of her repeated requests for help in a bid to preserve
its relationship with an ally.

"They were stepping on eggshells instead of taking a firm
stance," she said.

The UAE said Hedges pleaded guilty to the charges when he was
being cross-examined, The Guardian reported.

But Tejada said that any admissions her husband might have made
after months of detainment and solitary confinement should not be
considered valid.

"He was put through so much strain for six months that absolutely
nothing that he said - or didn't - can be used against him,"
Tejada said.

"The core issue was that he was being detained and he was being
held ... for something that he didn't do," she said.